by Brian Fisher
Chapter 21
Major Narja secured the restraints that held him in place. The lander bucked slightly as it left the hanger bay, and entered the cold vacuum of space. He quietly ran a second diagnostic on his armor. All of the carefully laid plans had been discarded as soon as the Ta'Reeth had arrived, but that was life. All battle plans are ruined when the fighting starts, so why should this be any different?
The lander was basically a large armored box with engines. Thick ablative armor offered protection from the cold depths of space. Electromagnetic shielding protected the hull from quite a bit of the punishment that inevitably accompanies an assault landing. The crew consisted of a pilot, copilot, and crew chief. During combat operations, the crew chief doubled as a gunner, laying down suppression fire with the landers' heavy cannons.
Each lander carried a platoon of forty heavily armored marines. With four platoons per company, and six companies to a battalion, Redemptions' Marines made for a small invasion force. Well trained, and properly equipped, the Marines valiantly fought to balance their lack of numbers with skill, and bravery.
The Marines all took special pride in their armor. Most armors were decorated according to the Marine that used it. The humans liked to name their armor, as if it would give it life, or protect them from serious harm. Names like 'Death Machine,' or 'Frag Killer' were popular. The Bakeerons seemed to prefer to paint natural murals on their suits of armor. Many of them had chosen murals of lightning flashing over a windswept valley, with fearsome rock formations towering on either side. Even the Caldonians painted their armor. The Lava Fields of Caldon were quite popular. Even Major Narja painted his, except he preferred a simple gray and black camouflage pattern, which allowed him to blend into most environments.
As the landers glided through space, the battle for Olcai raged around them. Fighters whipped around each other like angry insects trying to kill one another. The Ta'Reeth fighters sliced through space, like shards of razor sharp bone exploding from a crushed skull. Green plasma streaked through space, and slammed into the shields of a nearby fighter. The shields sparked, and started to sizzle as the plasma clung to it, draining its power. With the shields gone, the fighter was helpless when the Ta'Reeth fighters came in for the kill.
"Hold on. Things are going to get a little rough." the pilot's voice crackled over the intercom. The lander shuddered under the impact of plasma cannons. Marines held on to the restraints holding them in place. "Seal your suits. We're going to have a hull breach in about ten seconds!" panic never entered the pilot's voice as the lander raced through space, and into the upper atmosphere of Olcai.
The lander shook horribly, then a section of the hull ripped open, taking two Marines with it into the atmosphere. "Major, I can't hold this ship in trim. We need to affect an emergency evacuation." the pilot told Major Narja through his personal com channel. His voice shook with the strain of flying the wounded lander.
"Marines, we are effecting an emergency evaluation. You know your mission. Carry out your assignments." Narja ordered just before the hull opened, and sucked the marines into the cold air. Tiny explosives removed the restraints from the rest of the harnesses, allowing the Marines to gain control of their descent.
Thrusters fired, slowing Narja’s fall. He stayed upright due to the gyros in his armor. The sky around him filled with smoke as a Ta'Reeth lander plummeted past him. Narja aimed his descent at the nearest Ta'Reeth lander, and accelerated toward the ungainly craft. Two seconds passed before he slammed into the roof of the alien ship. He quickly retrieved his weapon from its storage position on his armor.
Narja took pride in his weapons. This particular one was his own design. It was a fully automatic, belt fed, miniature railgun, firing nine hundred rounds per minute. Each projectile housed a small, but effective high explosive. Not that the explosive was needed in the hypersonic projectiles. Careful to keep his balance, Narja fired a three round burst into the hull. Bone fragments exploded into the air, followed by a stream of hot, red blood. He reached to the compartment located at the small of his back, and removed an anti-armor mine. Narja secured his weapon before he set the delay on the mine for five seconds, jammed the mine into the oozing wound, and leapt toward the nearest Ta'Reeth lander.
As Narja flew through the air, the mine exploded, sending shards of blistering hot metal ripping through the lander, and everything inside the tiny ship was quickly torn to pieces. The next ship came quickly, almost making him miss his target. As it was, the impact knocked his breath from his chest, and caused stars to float before his eyes. Narja forced himself to climb to the top of the hull.
Once on top, Narja fired another three round burst into the hull, and prepared to set another mine. The lander bucked wildly, almost throwing him over the side, sending the mine hurling into the air. Narja grasped the edge of the hole that he had just blasted into the hull, stopping himself a split second before he tumbled into thin air. With his free hand he secured his weapon, then grabbed the edge with both hands, and started to pull himself up. Still bucking, the lander tried violently to throw him off. Narja took a hand away from his handhold long enough to prepare and set another mine. Once the mine was in place, he let go of the ship, and fell through the air.
The blast ripped the lander to shreds, and sent a small shockwave towards Narja. He braced himself for impact, and was sent tumbling through the sky. Freefall did not last long. Narja quickly righted himself, aimed for another lander, and ignited his thrusters. The distance closed rapidly, barely allowing Narja enough time to think.
He alighted on top of the speeding lander, and quickly fired a three round burst into the armored skin of the alien ship. Instead of immediately placing a mine in the wound, Narja broke off a large piece of bone. He then reached behind his head, and placed the fragment in his suit's Matter Reclamation Unit. The unit closed quickly, and tore the bone down to the molecular level. MRU's had become standard issue on battle armor. They broke down any suitable matter, and reformed it into what was needed. As long as the computer had the proper specifications, anything could be manufactured in a short time.
Narja needed fuel. His thrusters were nearly depleted, and the planet was approaching fast. With the fuel being made by the MRU, Narja prepared to set another mine. The gloves of his armor were covered in thick Ta'Reeth blood. The mine slipped in his fingers, nearly falling over the side of the ship. He caught the mine, and forced it into the wounded hull.
A moment later, the mine exploded. Narja fell over the edge, and into blackness as unconsciousness claimed him.
